Order in Chaos
by stabmysanity11
Summary: Jenna Lawrence is a typical teenage girl. With the exception of her villain father, the Manipulator. For the first time in her life, she feels accepted in a most unlikely place by the most unlikely people... WarrenOC
1. First Day and Water

**First Day**

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any characters copyrighted by Disney and Marvel Comics, I only own the ones you haven't heard of. ^.-

----------------------------------------------------

Jenna walked into the cafeteria, alone and sullen. Her first day of Sky High was not turning out how she thought it would. Sure, she got Hero (her mother would be so ashamed, yet her father proud), but none of the heroes wanted to talk to her _because_ of her parents.

Her mother was a sidekick nobody who could cheer people up. That was her only power. She used to be called 'Gaudea', which came from the Latin word 'gaudeo', which meant 'I am happy'.

Her father was a villain. One of the worst villains ever to set foot in Maxville. Because of her father's villainous ways, she rarely saw him, but when she did, he treated her like any normal father would; with great love and care. She loved her father, as well. She knew what he did was wrong, and she was just the slightest bit ashamed for sharing his name, but she loved him unconditionally all the same. And anyway, who isn't ashamed of their parents at least a little bit?

Now, anyone who would really get to know her would say she was a total sweetheart, which almost anyone who didn't get to know her would laugh outright at. She had a hard outer shell from countless different schools and never ending ridicule. She could be harsh, mean and she could throw you into a wall, even if you had super-strength and could overpower her easily. She did not have super-strength, telekinesis, pyrokinesis, or any other mentally or physically based super power. She did not have her mother's gaudiness, either. She had her father's power. Manipulation. She could control your thoughts and feelings. She _made_ people throw _themselves_ into walls. Or she made others do it for her. Although, those who became her friends got the good side of her. She could also cheer people up exceptionally, like her mother; but it wasn't a super power. It was just a knack for saying the right thing at the right time.

It was just this that would get her into trouble that first day of school at Sky High. Because not only was she not going to be shunted from the hero social class, but she was going to be excepted by the sidekicks…and one or two select heroes who didn't care who her father or mother was; there weren't very many at this school.

Jenna was wearing her characteristic black eyeliner on the bottom lid of her eyes instead of the top, a tinge of red cherry lip-gloss shone slightly in the fluorescent lights of the cafeteria as she walked towards the only empty table left.

Her black converse with the neon green and pink laces made gentle thudding noises as she walked towards it, but the noise was muffled by the many voices that carried through the large room.

Her old and ripped jeans were attracting many looks from both boys and girls alike. The girls were shaking their heads in disgust at her 'lack of style' and the boys were grinning appreciatively, knowing that she wasn't some girl who didn't want to get dirty.

Her shirt was attracting more attention than her pants, though. Her shirt was black, semi tight and ended just above her pants, leaving a small strip of skin to be seen. It wasn't just plain old black, though. It was graffitied on, by her. She loved designing new fashions for herself in her spare time.

On her arm hung a messenger bag made completely out of green, black and pink duct tape. One of her oldest and only friends had given it to her three years ago when she turned 14. She had just started High School in a different city and it had been an early birthday gift. She loved the bag dearly, and it showed. All over the bag were little things. Some written by her, some drawings, some things Cameron, the person who made the bag, had drawn or written before she had given it to her. It was a cherished possession and she never would have given it up for the world.

As Jenna neared the table, carrying her tray of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, a diet peach Snapple and an apple, she had her head held high, not looking at anyone but walking proudly towards that empty table. She could hear the whispers, but she was immune to them. She'd been to far too many schools and heard all of the 'smart remarks' people made about her so much, that she didn't quite care what they said anymore. Until she caught the phrase, "_She's gonna be the next Warren Peace!_" That confused her. She was going to be the next 'War and Peace'? How could she be the next _book_? She wrote it off simply as idiocy and sat down at the table. The chattering about her died away quickly and the cafeteria was, once more, a playground full of voices.

----------------------------------------------------

A few minutes later, a small group of six students walked in, completely soaked from head to toe. Jenna raised an eyebrow at the funny sight, but smiled, amused, and shook her head, returning to her lunch. She was not surprised when they all sat down at her table. It was, she knew, the last open table. She didn't acknowledge them other than a silent nod at each of them. She'd been raised to always be polite. A girl sitting next to her, decked out in a lot of green, smiled cheerfully and said, "You must be Jenna. I'm Layla, this is Will," she pointed out a boy dressed in red, white and blue, "Ethan," he was orange, "Magenta," purple, "Zack," bright, bright neon yellow, " and Warren." The last name struck her. _'She's gonna be the next Warren Peace!'_ "Warren Peace?" she asked, looking at him, thoughtfully. He looked at her for a moment and then growled slightly, obviously annoyed that she'd said his name. She raised her eyebrow and muttered to herself, "I can see why they'd say that, then…" Everyone looked at each other, confused, until Layla asked her, "What do you mean? What did who say?" Jenna smiled slightly and said, "I heard some people saying I would be 'the next Warren Peace'. I thought they were idiots and talking about the book, 'War and Peace'." Warren's gaze darkened, she noticed, but he said nothing.

Layla quickly changed the subject and said, "So, why are you starting Sky High so late? Did you just develop your powers?" It wasn't an uncommon question, but the girl obviously didn't know much about the superheroes of America. "No…there are more super hero academies across the world…Sky High is just one of the more…upper class…ones. I've had my powers since I was three," she said nonchalantly, taking a sip of her Snapple. She had tried not to make the girl feel dumb. She had a tendency for doing that sometimes. It was one of the things she was trying to control. Apparently, it was working. Layla just smiled and said, "So, where have you been?" Jenna thought a bit and said, "Well, there's at least one in every state. I've been to about half of those, and I got kicked out of about all of those. We'll just see if Sky High can handle my temper, shall we?" She smiled wolfishly.

Zach looked at her and said, "Is it true you're the Manipulator's daughter?" Everyone else at the table glared at him, except Warren, who just rolled his eyes. Jenna wasn't annoyed or perturbed. She was proud of who her father was…for the most part. "I am. News travels fast here…" She shrugged and finished her Snapple off. She looked at all of them and said, "Why are you so wet?" Layla blushed fiercely and said, "That was my fault…It was raining the day before and I forgot about that, so I suggested we all go outside to eat…we got caught under a torrent of water that just happened to break as we walked out." Jenna laughed lightly and said, "That must've been fun." "Oh, yes, _great fun_," Warren growled out, not liking her already. Jenna looked at him, affronted, and asked everyone else, "Did I say something?" They looked at her sympathetically and shook their heads.

The bell rang and Jenna said, "Well, it's been nice, but I have to get to…," she checked her schedule, "Mad Science. I'll see you later." "Do you even know where it is?" Warren asked, glaring at her. "No, but I guess I'll find out, won't I?" Will pushed his friend lightly and said, "Warren and I will go with you. We're in your class." Jenna frowned and said, "I didn't see you before…" "We were in the principal's office. She was just lecturing us on not destroying the cafeteria again this year. She does that every year…," Will said, grinning slightly. Jenna shrugged and said, "Alright. Let's go." The three walked out after saying goodbye to the Sidekicks.


	2. Fake Leather and Nicknames

After school was over that day, Jenna walked to her locker and bumped into someone on the way. She grumbled a bit and looked up. It was Warren; he was glaring at her. "Hey," she said flatly. "Hmm," he 'said', not looking at her. He walked over to the locker next to hers and opened it. She sighed mentally and opened hers. She could tell he was annoyed with her about the locker situation, but then again, so was she. She didn't want to have to see the moody pyro everyday for the next two years.

Just as she closed her locker, the small group closed in on both of them. Layla smiled and said, "Oh, at least you two got lockers close to each other. The rest of us are all so spread out. Now we can all meet here after school!" She beamed at the two locker buddies. Jenna half-smiled and rubbed her arm, saying, "Yea…isn't that something?" Layla pressed on and said, "Well, since it's Friday, the guys and I were thinking about doing something tonight. We were going to meet up at the Paper Lantern and eat dinner there, except for Will, he hates Chinese, and then, when Warren's shift ended, we were gonna go to the amusement park and hang out a bit. Want to come, Jen?" Jenna looked at the green clad girl and said, "Uh…sure. Where's the Paper Lantern, then?" "Gimme your phone number and address, Will and I will pick you up at 7," Layla said, handing her a piece of paper and a pen from her bag.

Jenna did as she was told, just so amazed that she actually had plans on her first day of school. This was like an alternate universe for her. She handed the paper and pen back to Layla. Layla wrote something down on a different piece of paper and handed it to her. It had everyone else's phone number and address on it. She noticed she lived closest to Warren, who lived right down the street from her. The thought wasn't comforting. "Well, I think the bus is gonna leave soon, so we should go," Will said hurriedly. He knew Ron would wait for him, though. Everyone nodded and they all boarded the bus a minute later.

----------------------------------------------------

As soon as Jenna got home, she smiled at her mother and said, "School was great. I made some friends, I have plans tonight, so I'm gonna go get ready, ok?" She was up the stairs and in her locked room before her mother could register anything she'd said. She opened her closet and looked at her clothes. _'Amusement park...amusement park…'_ She picked out another pair of ripped jeans, this time a hip hugger pair and a studded belt. She changed her shirt, too. She took it off, exposing her bra and bare stomach. She had an athlete's stomach; slight abs and a toned stomach. She picked out an almost-belly shirt. It rose a lot higher than the shirt she'd had on that day, but not nearly as high as a belly shirt. Mid-stomach was her guess. It was black, and her jeans were dark blue with faded patches of blue. She redid her makeup and pulled her hair into twin buns on her head. Her blonde hair had been getting in her face all day.

Her hair wasn't that long, only down to a little below her shoulders, but it was nice and shiny and semi-straight. She had her infamous side-swept bangs in front of her left eye and she put her converse back on. She took only her wallet (which had a chain on it to prevent theft) with about 50 dollars in cash. She was running low and she knew she'd need to find a good paying job soon. Maybe something at the amusement park…as long as it wasn't cleaning up people's puke.

----------------------------------------------------

7 o'clock came and Layla, Will and, to Jenna's surprise, Warren came to pick her up. Will explained that, since he already lived so close, he'd accompany them to his workplace. Layla squealed about how cute Jenna looked and grinned and said, "Ditto. I like that skirt…where'd you get it?" "Oh, I made it…I do that a lot. Some of the products in stores that are made from wool and polyester are just so cruel!" Layla glanced reproachfully at Warren, who had a black leather jacket on. He rolled his eyes and said, "Give it up, Hippie. I like my jacket."

Jenna laughed a bit and said, "I don't think that's real leather, though…It's hand made. Leather is really hard to sew by hand…," Jenna said, looking at the jacket. Warren glanced at her and said, "You're right. It's not leather. But she's still on my case. Like, by wearing a fake leather jacket is just making it ok for people to wear real leather…" He rolled his eyes again. Layla crossed her arms and said, "Hmph!"

Jenna laughed again and said, "Actually, if you think about it, wearing a _fake_ leather jacket is promoting wearing fake leather, not real leather. So technically, Warren is all for the animals." Layla peered at her and said, "Now you're just taking sides." She grinned playfully at her though. Jenna shook her head and said, "You just keep thinking that, Lay." The nickname came out automatically. She's been calling Layla 'Lay' in her mind all day. And Layla had started it, anyway. She'd called her 'Jen'.

Layla beamed at the term and turned to Will, hitting his arm. "How come you never gave me a nickname?" she demanded, putting on a stern look. Will glared at Jenna playfully and said, "Oh, _thanks_ for that, Jenna." Jenna nodded and said, "Oh, anytime, William." She stuck her tongue out as the rounded the corner and came into view of a Chinese style restaurant. A sign said 'Paper Lantern'.

----------------------------------------------------

The four teens walked into the restaurant and a hostess seated them. Well, she seated Will, Layla and Jenna. Magenta, Zack and Ethan weren't there yet. Warren went into the backroom and changed into his busboy garb. He caught Jenna looking at him when he came out and glared at her, mouthing, "_Don't say a word._" She grinned and nodded.

The remaining people arrived and they all ordered, except Will, who'd already eaten. The food came, delivered by Warren, who glared at Jenna, who'd been about to say something with a grin on her face, again and said, "I'm warning you, don't say it." She looked at him innocently and said, "Say what?" He glared again, and she glared back, playfully. He sighed and said, "You're infuriating." "And you're kinda cute when you're mad," she said, smiling sweetly at him. His eyes widened, as did everyone else's, and he said, "_What?_" Jenna laughed and said, "Oh, you should've seen your face…" He blinked again and walked away.


	3. Job Interviews, Chocolat and the Mets

Everyone else was looking at her silently, until Magenta spoke up and said, "Were you actually joking?" Jenna nodded and said, "Of course." Magenta laughed and said, "You've got guts…Layla, tell her what happened to you." Layla blushed and said, "Well, in our freshman year, I was kind of using Warren to make Will mad," Jenna looked at her, shocked, and Layla shook her head and said, "No, no, Warren knew. Don't worry. But anyway, one day Will was walking by with Gwen, holding her hand and talking, so I took Warren's hand and said, 'Hey cutie'. He burned my hand and told me never to call him cutie. That burn _hurt_." Jenna laughed and said, "That doesn't surprise me. But I didn't call him 'cutie' I said he was cute. And I was joking. And not holding his hand."

----------------------------------------------------

After dinner, the six teens sat, waiting for Warren to finish his shift at 9. The amusement park closed at 2 in the morning, so they had time. In those two hours, Jenna had gotten much closer to everyone. She'd even been invited to Will's house for a group sleepover the next night. "They're so fun! Will's mom and dad are great, everyone comes and we hardly ever sleep." "Everyone?" Jenna asked, quirking an eyebrow. Layla nodded and said, "Yes, everyone. Even Warren. He's not as antisocial as everyone thinks." Jenna shrugged and said, "I can't picture Warren in pyjamas." Everyone laughed when she said that and Will said, "Oh, just you wait…"

----------------------------------------------------

Warren's shift ended at 9 and they waited a little longer for him to change back. He came back out and said, "Let's get this over with." Jenna grinned a bit and, as they were walking out, noticed a sign in the restaurant saying 'Help Wanted'. "Hey, guys, I'll be right back…" She turned around and went to find the back office. She knocked and a woman said, "Come in," in a heavy Chinese accent. Jenna opened the door and walked in timidly. The woman seemed very nice, though. Jenna smiled and said, "I couldn't help but notice the 'Help Wanted' sign on the door…I'm looking for a job right now and I wondered if I could schedule an appointment for an interview sometime?" The woman looked at her closely and said, "You're hired. You'll be a busgirl and maybe a waitress if I need one. The job entitles washing dishes, cleaning off tables and you get paid $8.50 an hour. Ok with you? You start tomorrow. I'll pair you with Warren…he'll get you up to speed. You seem to be friends." Jenna was shocked. This was definitely a good day. She nodded and said, "What time tomorrow?" "8:00 sharp. Good night." Jenna smiled and nodded, "Good night, Mrs. Li." The old woman smiled and Jenna walked back outside, where everyone was waiting.

"Where were you?" Layla asked curiously. "Job interview…," she said, not looking at Warren. "Did you get it?" Warren asked gruffly, although he seemed to already know the answer. "8:00 sharp," she said, looking at him. He sighed and said, "You better not slow me down." Jenna rolled her eyes and said, "It's not my first job as a busgirl, Warren." He shrugged and said nothing.

----------------------------------------------------

The next morning, Jenna woke up at 7, got dressed in her usual ripped jeans and black t-shirt and walked down to have breakfast. She'd told her mom about the job when she got home last night at around 3. They'd stayed at the park until it closed, then they went to the actual playground park and fooled around. She and Warren had mostly just sat on the swings while the rest of them acted like monkeys.

At 7:30, the doorbell rang and Jenna gently put her bowl and spoon in the sink. She walked over to the door, confused, and opened it to see Warren standing there. She looked at him, surprised and said, "I have 20 minutes…it doesn't take long to get to the Paper Lantern from here." Warren shook his head and said, "Can I come in or are you going to make me stand outside all day?" Jenna blushed a bit and said, "Come in." Her stereo was playing softly in the kitchen. 'Savin' Me' by Nickelback was playing.

"Want something to eat…or drink?" she asked, watching him sit on a bar stool at their kitchen island. He shook his head and said, "No, thanks. You're coming to that sleepover thing tonight, aren't you?" she nodded, "You should bring your stuff with you to the Paper Lantern. We're working until 5 today," she nodded again and looked at the bag in the hall. "Is that what you came here for?" she asked, genuinely interested. Warren shrugged and said, "I didn't want to sit at home, waiting to go to work." Jenna nodded and said, "Oh. Well, glad to be of service, then." She grinned a bit, looking at the time. It was almost 7:50. "We should get going…I don't want to be late on my first day," she said, picking her bag and keys up. Warren nodded and stood, hoisting his own bag onto his shoulders. Jenna unhooked her cell phone and put it in her bag as well. The two walked out of her house and into the Paper Lantern, ten minutes later.

----------------------------------------------------

Work went quickly; Warren and Jenna didn't talk very much in between cleaning tables and washing dishes. At the end of their shift, Jenna walked into the back room first and pulled her apron off, messing her hair up a bit. She ran a hand through it and then put it up in a messy bun again just as Warren walked in. She looked at him and said, "Well, that was fun." She grinned at him. He shrugged. "You get used to it." She nodded and waited for him to get ready while she applied more eyeliner and lip-gloss.

----------------------------------------------------

Fifteen minutes later, they were standing in Will's doorway, talking about baseball and holding two very full bags of steaming Chinese food, when Mrs. Stronghold opened the door. "Hello, Warren," she said warmly before her gaze turned to Jenna. She smiled again, even warmer, and said, "You must be Jenna. Layla and Will have told us so much about you. Come in, they're in the den." Jenna and Warren walked into the house and Warren lead the way into the den, where they could hear talking and laughing and the TV on. Everyone was already there. The girls were talking on the couch while the guys played Will's X-Box. Zack was winning.

Everyone looked up at the sounds of footsteps and the smell of food. The immediately grabbed the food and started dishing it out. Jenna just grinned and didn't eat. She and Warren had had a dinner break before they left.

----------------------------------------------------

After dinner (which lasted about an hour), and after Jenna had beaten Warren on the X-Box three times (he was a sore loser), Layla suggested the watch a movie. Everyone agreed and she picked out 'Chocolat', the boys groaned at the choice (Magenta and Jenna did too, silently) but Layla shushed them, telling them they had told her to pick, which was true. Everyone got comfortable. Layla and Will on the love seat, Ethan, Magenta and Zach took up the couch and Warren and Jenna sat down next to each other, leaning against the couch. Each little group had a small bowl of popcorn between them. Warren and Jenna, Ethan, Maj and Zack, Will and Layla.

The movie started and everyone watched it quietly, the only other sounds coming from the rustling of popcorn in the bowls and the slow chewing of it in their mouths. When the movie ended, it was around 8 o'clock. Warren and Jenna were talking quietly, having lost interest in the movie (although Jenna had shushed him when Johnny Depp had come on screen).

They had resumed their conversation about baseball. Who was better: The Yankees or the Mets? Jenna said Mets, Warren said Yankees. By the time they were finished discussing it, Warren had flicked her with a flame and she'd manipulated his thoughts long enough for him to say "_The Mets are definitely better than the Yankees_"; which she'd recorded on her cell phone. Warren was now trying to steal the phone from her to delete the audio clip.

He was leaning over her, reaching for the phone, which she held in her outstretched hand. It wasn't until Layla cough-giggled that they realized that the movie was over and now everyone was watching _them_. Warren immediately straightened and coughed, trying not to blush. Jenna's cheeks were tinted pink, but she too was trying not to blush. She did, however, hide her cell phone in her bag.

She shot Warren a triumphant glance and he glared at her again. She grinned in reply. Layla looked at them and they stopped.


	4. Truth or Dare and Is a kiss under PG 13?

"So, what are we doing now?" Jenna asked, looking around at everyone. "Well, we could play a game…," Layla suggested. "Spin the Bottle!" Zack said, eagerly. Maj hit him and everyone laughed. "Truth or Dare?" Ethan asked, looking at everyone. Jenna shrugged and said, "I'll play." Everyone else nodded, except Warren, who said, "No, thanks, I'll just watch." Jenna smirked and said, "Afraid of a dare, Warren?" He glared and said, "Alright, I'm in." Layla grinned and said, "So _that's_ how you do it…" Jenna laughed and everyone sat in a circle. "I'll go first," Will said, taking the lead. "Jenna: Truth or Dare." Jenna rolled her eyes and said, "Oh, this is just an initiation thing, isn't it? Dare." Will's face fell. He hated thinking up dares.

"Erm…I dare you to…" "Wait a minute, aren't we going to have some ground rules for this?" Jenna asked. Everyone looked at her. "You know, boundaries. Like…dares have to be performed down here, nothing over Pg-13 material, umm, nothing involving anyone else unless they consent and the darer confers with them first…if you don't answer a truth question, there's a backup dare you have to do that's much worse…that sort of thing," she said, explaining. "Ok, those are the rules now," Layla said.

"Is a kiss under PG-13?" Zack asked enthusiastically. Maj hit him again. "Yea, I'd think so," Jenna said, shrugging. "Although, it kind of depends on what _kind_ of kiss you're talking about." Zack shrugged and grinned, thinking up a dare. Jenna turned to Will and said, "Well, my dare?" Will sighed and said, "I dare you to…do a somersault." Layla giggled, Zack, Maj and Ethan roared with laughter, Jenna looked at Will and blinked, and Warren shook his head, saying, "Oh, that was lame, Stronghold…" Will threw a pillow at Warren and said, "Oh, shut up…"

Jenna got up and did the dare, executing a perfect somersault. It wasn't that hard. Spending time in her backyard had it's perks. Now it was Jenna's turn. She looked around at them all and said, "Lay: Truth or Dare?" Layla glared and said, "Truth." Jenna thought and said, "Hmm…Ok, in your freshman year when you asked Warren to go to the dance with you, was that just because you wanted to make Will jealous?"

Layla blushed furiously and said, "I hate you…No. I had a small crush on Warren at the time." Jenna grinned triumphantly and said, "Your turn…" Layla glared at her and said, "Warren: Truth or Dare." Warren sighed and sized Layla up. "Well, I'm not gonna say truth, because you're too good at those, so, dare." Layla smirked and said, "I dare you to play the rest of the game with your shirt off." Jenna roared with laughter and said, "I don't think you've gotten over that crush yet, Lay…" Warren glared at both girls and said, "And if I don't?" "Then you have to do the backup dare," Jenna said, still laughing. "And that would be?" Warren asked, still glaring. "Oh…something along the lines of streaking…the backup dare goes outside of the rules, of course." Warren growled and took his shirt off, throwing it behind him and crossing his arms. Jenna was still laughing and Layla was blushing. Warren punched Jenna and said, "Shut up." Jenna just laughed harder.

----------------------------------------------------

The game went on for a while after that until Zack got his turn. "Jenna: Truth or dare?" Jenna automatically said, "Dare." She never said truth. Zack smirked and said, "I dare you to...Warren, come here." Warren glared and went, Zack whispered something in his ear, he actually laughed, and nodded. "I dare you to lick Warren's hand. Jenna made a face and said, "I don't know where that hand's been!" "Would you rather do the backup dare?" Warren asked, holding his hand out. Jenna glared and took his hand, licking it. She shuddered and said, "Oh, that was gross. You'd think with all the dish washing you did today it'd be clean…" Warren punched her again.

----------------------------------------------------

The game ended not long after that. They all changed into their pyjamas (girls in the bathroom, boys in the den). Jenna had a black spaghetti strap top and black cotton bottoms that covered her feet; she wore them too low. Will was wearing plaid bottoms and a plain white t-shirt, Layla a green dress like thing over green shorts, Maj, a purple top and black shorts, Zack, white shorts and a yellow shirt, Ethan, orange shirt and black shorts and Warren was wearing his boxers and a black shirt.

Everyone rolled their sleeping bags out on the floor and Warren and Jenna ended up head-to-head. Layla and Will were next to Jenna, Ethan was on the couch, and Zach and Maj were next to Warren. Jenna laid flat on her stomach, like Warren and they started talking again; everyone else was doing the same. Slowly, one by one, everyone fell asleep.

In the morning, Josie woke them up. They enjoyed a breakfast of bacon and eggs and toast. Everyone got dressed and made plans to meet up later in the afternoon. Jenna and Warren left together, as they lived closest to each other and everyone else departed not long after.


	5. Pooooool party!

At around 3 o'clock, Jenna was sitting in her room, listening to her playlist and playing games on the internet, waiting for a call from one of the guys (Layla had given each of them her house and phone number) to tell her where they were meeting up. Her music was playing so loud that she didn't hear the doorbell ring. Nor did she notice her mother open the door, greet her friends and yell up the stairs for her. That resulted in her friends coming upstairs (following the music) to her room.

They knocked on the door, she didn't hear it, so Warren opened the door and looked in. She had posters all over the room, her favourite bands, characters from her favourite movies, some pictures of her and her father, magazine articles she'd liked, writing, drawings, everything possible. She turned around, expecting her mother and saw her friends. "When did you get here?" she asked, turning the music down. "Just now, your mom yelled up at you, but you couldn't hear her," Layla said, grinning.

"Oooooh, I thought she was yelling at the dog…whoops," she said, standing up. "So, where are we going?" Everyone shrugged. Zach looked out the window and said, "You have a pool? Awesome." She nodded and said, "I really should clean that out…we could go swimming, if you want…" "We don't have our bathing suits," Warren pointed out. Jenna grinned and said, "I have a collection." "For boys, too?" She nodded and said, "Duh." She opened her closet door and pulled a box out from the top of her closet. She opened it and dumped it on her bed. Trunks, one pieces, bikinis, tankinis, Speedos…she had it all.

"You must have a lot of time on your hands…," Zack said, pulling out a pair of white and yellow trunks. "Why do you have trunks, anyway?" Warren asked, picking up a pair of black trunks with flames. "Because I can do this…" She picked up a pair of black and pink trunk and a black and pink bikini top and held it up to her body. "Girls can wear trunks too, they just have to know how to wear them!"

Warren laughed and said, "I bet you look ridiculous in those." "How much do you bet?" she asked, grinning. "Five bucks." "Done." They shook hands and she walked into the bathroom that she had to herself.

She changed into the bathing ensemble and walked out. "What say you, fiend?" she asked, twirling in a circle slowly. Warren grunted and fished five dollars out of his pocket, which he then slapped into her palm. "Ha. Ridiculous my butt!"

She walked over to her closet and pulled out another box. This one was full of towels. She dumped those on her bed as well and picked out her fluffy towel. It was black, pink and green and she'd 'graffitied' it, too.

----------------------------------------------------

Everyone changed into their bathing suits; the colors they picked were their colors. Warren had black and red, Zack had white and yellow, Will had red, white and blue, Ethan had orange, Layla had green, Maj had black and purple and Jenna had pink and black…and green. She'd changed her top to the green version of the other one. They all grabbed their towels and walked outside.

While they set their things up, Jenna cleaned out the pool. Vacuumed the bottom, cleaned out the filters, put in some chlorine, checked the water temperature and swept the diving board off. Once she was finished, she set up her own things and said, "Have at it." Zack, Ethan, Layla, Maj and Will jumped into the pool. Warren walked in, slowly, getting used to the water. Jenna walked into the house, seeing her mother waving at her.

"Did you clean the pool?" she asked. Jenna nodded and said, "Yea, I vacuumed, swept, chlorined, cleaned and did everything else I was supposed to. Her mother nodded and said, "Alright, I'll bring some snacks out for you in a little while, then. I just have to go shopping. Do you need anything from the store?" Jenna shook her head and said, "Nope…Bye, Mom."

She walked back out and slid into the pool slowly, where she immediately got jumped on and pushed underwater. Her attacker let her go, but she grabbed their arm. One of the guys. She expected to see Zack, but instead, she saw Will. She glared and said, "What was that for?" He grinned and said, "That was for…giving Layla a nickname." Jenna laughed and pushed him under herself and then swam away.

----------------------------------------------------

They played for hours until Zack suggested they play chicken. Ethan confessed that he didn't like chicken, but he'd like to watch. Everyone paired up. Will and Layla, Zack and Maj and Warren took Jenna. Jenna climbed onto his shoulders and he grabbed her legs, securing her there. Will and Layla went up against Zack and Maj first. Zack and Maj lost, so Warren and Jenna stepped up to face Layla and Will. The fight went on for a long time before, in a stroke of luck, Layla's hand slipped and Jenna pushed her back. Warren and Jenna went up against Zack and Maj next, which they also won.

----------------------------------------------------

About an hour later, everyone but Warren and Jenna were out of the pool and sun bathing. Jenna and Warren were both trying to dunk each other, both of them failing miserably. Since Warren wasn't able to use his power, they'd agreed that she wouldn't be allowed to use hers, either. She would've won a million times over by then if she'd been allowed.

It was nearing nightfall when the doorbell rang. Jenna furrowed her brow. She wondered who'd be coming to see them. _Probably just one of Mom's friends…_, she thought, shaking it off. She continued trying dunk Warren until her mother and the person came out to the pool. Jenna was on Warren's back, trying to push him under, with his arms around her waist, trying to pull her off of him. Someone, a man, cleared his throat loudly. Jenna and Warren looked up, a bit annoyed at whoever had disturbed their game. Jenna squealed and let go of Warren, swimming over to the side of the pool, hoisting herself up and throwing herself on the man, whom she now recognized as her father. She hugged him with all of her might and he laughed and hugged her back just as tightly.

Warren emerged from the pool slowly, looking at his friends in confusion; his face mirrored theirs as well. Her mother's face looked amused; the site they had just seen reminded her of how her and her husband had once been. As Jenna finally released her father from her vice-like grip, she kissed his cheek and said, "I didn't know you were coming home today!" He smiled and said in a deep voice, "Surprise? I would've called, but I can see now that I would've hindered this little…pool fight?" He chuckled softly, pushing a strand of his daughter's hair back gently.

Jenna blushed and said, "Dad, this is Will, Layla, Magenta, Zach, Ethan and Warren. Guys, this is my dad…obviously," she pointed each of them out to her father and he smiled and said 'Hello'. They all nodded, except for Zack, who let out a, "Yo, man!" Jenna rolled her eyes and her father laughed a bit at the exuberant young man. "Well, we'll leave you with your friends now, Jenna. See you all soon." Her parents departed back into the house, smiling and laughing—no doubt about Jenna and Warren's fight.

Jenna turned to her friends and waited, expectantly. Layla was the first to speak. "He seemed really nice, Jen," she said, smiling brightly. Everyone nodded and Ethan said, "You'd never guess he was a villain by his behaviour here…" Jenna smiled slightly and said, "Yea, well, villains aren't that different from heroes; around their families, anyway." Warren stayed unnaturally quiet and she looked at him, frowned a bit and said, "Warren, what's up?" His gaze flickered towards her and he shook his head, saying, "N-nothing. Just thinking." _You forgot to say 'about my father'_, she said in her mind sadly.

She had no idea how Baron Battle had acted around his family, but her father knew him. She knew a lot of other villains. They all had wives and some even had children. They weren't much different than her father. The only difference between villains and heroes was the way they chose to use their powers. For good or for evil, they got categorized. Her father had never killed anyone before. He just disagreed with the heroes. Especially the Commander and Jetstream. She often wondered if Will's parents judged her by her father. She hoped not…


	6. Dad! and Strawberry Goodness

As it neared 10, everyone sighed in defeat and started heading home, all except for Warren. Since he lived right down the street, he saw no reason to leave yet. A 2 minutes walk in the dark wouldn't hurt him one bit. Hardly anyone passed on their street at that time of night.

So Warren stayed and he had a very late dinner with Jenna and her family. It was a nice affair. Jenna's father-Jonas, he liked to be called, never Mr. Lawrence- asked Warren a lot of questions: Who were your parents? How is Baron? How do you feel about your father being in jail? Do you visit him? How old are you now? What's your power? Are you interested in my daughter? Jenna nearly choked on the sip of soda she'd had in her mouth at that question.

"Dad!" she exclaimed after swallowing the soda and wiping her mouth with a napkin. She shot him a glare while he laughed softly. Warren was stammering, looking hopelessly at Jenna. Jenna gave him a sympathetic smile and Warren said, "I…err…well, we're…we're just…just friends." Jonas smiled and said, "Well, it looked like you two were quite close today in that pool.

Jenna looked at her father and said, "I was trying to push him underwater. How is that even remotely _close looking_ to you?!" Jonas smiled and said, "Your mother and I did the exact same thing when we were your age." Jenna shut up and blinked. "That doesn't mean anything," she said reproachfully. _Poor Warren…_She looked at him and he was looking…embarrassed…and was blushing. He also looked like he wanted to say something more, but he couldn't do it.

----------------------------------------------------

After dinner, Jenna and Warren went up to her room. Jenna closed the door after herself and said, "Sorry about dinner, Warren…" He smiled and said, "No problem…if you ever came to my house and had dinner with me and my mom, you'd get the same questions." Jenna grinned and said, "How about tomorrow?" She winked playfully. "Really?" he asked, looking at her. Jenna shrugged and said, "I was actually kidding, but ok!" Warren laughed and said, "I'll tell my mom when I get home, then."

Jenna frowned and said, "Are you leaving now?" She didn't want him to leave. Warren shrugged and said, "It's getting late and, unless I sleep here, I probably should go…" Jenna just cut him off by handing him the phone. "I made your mind up for you." Warren laughed and dialled his phone number. His mother answered and he talked to her for a bit while Jenna went to find him some clothes to sleep in. It seemed she had quite a lot of boy's clothes.

----------------------------------------------------

After the call was finished, Jenna handed him his clothes-red cotton bottoms and a black cotton shirt- and showed him to the bathroom. She changed in her own room-red cotton shirt and black cotton pants-and took her hair out of it's previous ponytail, putting it up in a messy bun instead. When Warren walked out of her bathroom, she walked in and brushed her teeth, washed her face and all that good stuff.

She walked back out to find Warren sitting on her bed, looking at her. "So, where…" "We're going to the living room, grab the pillows, I'll get the blankets," she said, grabbing the blankets from her bed and heading downstairs. Warren followed her down and they walked into the living room, where she set the blankets down on an armchair. He put the pillows down above that and looked at her, lost. She grinned and started stripping the couch of it's cushions.

Getting the idea, Warren started helping her until it was clean. They pulled out the sofa bed and put the pillows and blankets on it in a sort of…fort/cocoon. Jenna went into the kitchen and grabbed a couple of cans of soda, some chips, some popcorn (they didn't need a microwave—they had Warren) and, of course, candy.

When she walked back into the living room, Warren was looking at her DVD collection. Jenna set the food down and walked over to him, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Find anything good?" she asked, watching him. He turned around, holding the 'Little Miss Sunshine' DVD. She grinned and said, "Love that movie." She put the movie in and then crawled into the bed next to Warren. She opened a bag of chips and held the bag in her mouth while she journeyed through the starting menu.

The movie started and she took a couple chips in her hand, eating them at regular intervals. Next to her, Warren was drinking a Dr. Pepper. They made their way through the food and drinks and the movie slowly. By the end, Jenna had fallen asleep on Warren's shoulder.

Warren gently laid her down on the pillow and got up, walked into the kitchen and put the garbage away. He walked back into the living room and slipped under the covers next to Jenna. A few minutes later, Jenna was curled up next to him, her head on his shoulder. He smiled slightly and slid his arm under her and around her waist. He soon fell asleep to the smell of strawberries and cream…the smell of her shampoo.


	7. Just Friends My Butt and Tigers

"_Just friends my butt...,"Jonas said, grinning. Laura giggled and said, "Jenna…Warren…wake up!_ Jenna! Jenna! Warren, wake up!" Jenna groaned at the whispered conversation/wake up call. She swatted at her mothers hand and buried her face deeper into her very comfortable, warm, good smelling pillow. _Wait a minute…since when are my pillows __**warm and good smelling**_ She opened her eyes to Warren's chest. It was rising up and down rhythmically. He was still asleep. She got up slowly, trying not to wake him, but he just pulled her back down again.

Her mother giggled again and her father laughed, leaning in the doorway. Jenna glared at them and said, "Oh, just go away!" They left, laughing. Jenna rolled her eyes, irritably, and continued trying to disengage herself from Warren. It wasn't working very well, though.

She finally tired of trying to out-strength him and settled for whispering in his ear. "_Warren…Waaaaaarren! Warren, wake up!_" she cooed, speaking softly. He murmured something inaudible and pulled her closer to him again. Jenna stifled a laugh and poked him in the shoulder. "Warren, wake up!" she attempted again, sighing and putting her chin on his chest again. He furrowed his eyebrows and yawned.

Opening his eyes, he looked around and then noticed that he was holding onto something…something that was lying on his chest. Or part of it, anyway. He looked down at the thing and his eyes widened when he saw it was Jenna. She looked annoyed. He let her go and said, "How did we-oooh…" His voice was gruff and husky from his sleep.

Jenna smiled at her freedom and rolled away from him. "I dunno how, but I think you must sleep with a teddy bear or something at home, because you wouldn't let me go," she smirked playfully at him. Warren sat and said, "Oh, don't be stupid, it's not a bear, it's a tig-" He stopped dead, his eyes going wide again. Jenna was biting her lip to stop herself from laughing.

He glared and said, "If you say _one word_ to anyone about that, I swear to God, I will _roast you alive_." Jenna let a laugh escape and saluted him, saying, "Yessir!" She grabbed the phone and he lunged at her, tackling her onto the bed and pinning her there. He grabbed the phone and pressed the 'Talk' button just as Layla's cheery voice sounded on the other end. He growled and said, "_No one, Lawrence. Understood? No. One._" Jenna nodded, this time seriously, and said (squeaked), "Ok, Warren." He nodded curtly and got off of her.

She stayed where she was for a moment before bursting out laughing. "Y-y-you s-sl-sleep w-w-with a-a-a t-t-tiiiigerrrr" she said, stumbling on her words between bursts of laughter. Warren glared at her and pushed her off the bed, making her roll onto the floor—and laugh harder.


	8. Shirts, Stuffed Animals and Necklaces

Later that day, Warren and Jenna walked into the mall to meet up with the rest of the gang. Jenna got pounced on by Maj, who was being chased by Layla, who had a bright pink shirt in her hand that she was trying to put on Maj. "I'M SAFE! Oh, my God, Jenna, you have noooooo idea how glad I am to see you! She's a maniac!" Maj said quickly, pushing Jenna in front of her every time Layla tried to put the shirt on her.

"What's wrong with the shirt?" Jenna asked, grabbing it from Layla successfully and looking at it. It was bright pink and had black fishnet sleeves. "It's hideously pink!" "Says the girl who wears icky purple," Jenna said, scrunching her nose up playfully at Maj's clothes. Maj glared and punched Jenna's arm playfully as well, saying, "Then _you_ take it. I don't want it." Jenna grinned and said, "I'll be right back, then." She sped off to the nearest girl's room to change her shirt from the blain black belly shirt to the bright pink and black fishnet sleeved one.

She came back out with her old shirt in her hand. Maj glared and said, "Sure, it looks good on _her_…" She laughed a bit. They walked around the mall for a while, playing little games and looking in stores until they decided to split up. The girls went shopping while the boys stay on a bench near the toy store. Jenna dragged the girls into the toy store and into the stuffed animal section.

"I say with by each of the guys a stuffed animal we think fits them best," she said, a plan already forming in her mind. "A stuffed animal? Why?" Maj asked, confused. "To show them we care. And that way, they think they have to get us something," Layla said, surprising both of the other girls. "Ok, we'll go with that. I'll take Ethan and Warren, you two get stuff for your boys," Jenna said, grinning. She picked out a penguin for Ethan and a tiger for Warren. When they had their gifts, they walked over to the cashier (Layla was making sure the boys weren't looking into the store) and bought the animals, as well as four small, decorative bags to put them in.

Layla had gotten Will a wolf and Maj got Zack an eel. They admired the toys for a moment before putting them in the bags and walking out the boys. They walked up behind them and, kneeling on the bench behind them, put the bags on their laps. The boys looked back at them, confused, and Will asked, "What are these?" "A token of our friendship. From all of us," Maj said poetically. Layla and Jenna were having a hard time hiding their laughter. Will opened his first and grinned slightly at his small wolf. He thanked Maj and Jenna and kissed Layla on the cheek.

Ethan opened his next and grinned. "I love penguins!" Warren had a dark look on his face and he was glaring at Jenna already, knowing what was coming. His eyes, said, 'If-you-did-it-I-will-kill-you'. She smiled innocently at him while Zack opened his eel and said, "Yo, this is so awesome! Thanks, ma-guys!"

Now everyone was looking at Warren, waiting for him to open his present. He sighed and opened it, pulling out a small Bengal tiger. "We thought it represented you quite well. Well, Jenna picked it out, but that was her reason and we agreed." Warren looked visibly relieved and he muttered a gruff, 'Thanks', before stuffing the tiger back into the bag.

"Alright, now we're actually going shopping…see you boys later," Jenna said. The girls walked off talking about stupid things. Will turned to the guys and said, "I think we should get them something as well…" Warren gave him a sharp look and said, "I'm betting that was Jenna's idea." Will looked at him and said, "And?" Ethan and Zack were looking at him quizzically, wondering why that would matter. Warren sighed and said, "Nevermind. What would we get them, anyway?" Will grinned and said, "Come on."

----------------------------------------------------

Half an hour later, the boys walked into the food court, having seen Jenna's bright pink shirt. They each had a present except for Ethan, who insisted that, since Warren had picked it out, he should give it to her. They walked up to the girls, who were sitting in a booth drinking sodas and sat down next to them. Will stole Layla's soda and took a drink out of it, earning a smack on the hand and the soda being ripped out of his hand.

Jenna looked at the boys and noticed something was…different. She frowned and said, "What's up?" "We thought that we, like you, ought to acknowledge our friendship. So we fished around the mall for something we thought you'd all like," Ethan said, smiling at them. Layla, Jenna and Maj silently gave each other high fives under the table. "So, here you go," Warren said, handing Jenna the gift box. Will and Zack handed Maj and Layla their boxes and, simultaneously, each girl opened the box and smiled (or gasped, in Layla's case).

Jenna pulled out a pretty necklace with a pink and black stone. It was a pretty long necklace, so, when she put it on, she had to loop it around her neck once; it still hung down to her breasts, though. Maj got a choker with a black leather band and a purple Chinese symbol on it. Layla got a pretty normal sized necklace with a green rose pendant on it. The girls hugged each of the guys for their thoughtfulness.


	9. Scrapbooks, Food Fights & Leggy Blondes

At 6 o'clock, the mall closed and the 7 friends went in their separate directions, towards their houses. Warren turned to Jenna and said, "You didn't say anything to them, did you?" Jenna shook her head and said, "Nope. I really _do_ think that the tiger fits your personality; fierce but cute." She smiled and pinched his cheek playfully. He swatted her hand away and smiled, saying, "You still coming to dinner?"

Her face went blank and she said, "What?" She realized what he meant and said, "Oooh, right. Yea, I am. I just have to go tell my parents and put my shirt away. I'll be right back." She raced into her house and up the stairs, putting her shirt away, applying a bit of make up, fixing her hair, spraying some perfume on and then walking downstairs to inform her parents where she was going.

Finally, she walked back outside and down to Warren. He rolled his eyes and said, "In and out mean anything to you?" She grinned and said, "I wanted to look pretty for your mom!" He rolled his eyes and said, "You shouldn't have bothered. You looked pretty before." Jenna smiled and kissed his cheek. "Spoken like a true tiger." He glared and pushed her into his house. She laughed a bit before she was engulfed in a hug from who she could only imagine was Warren's mom.

"Hey, Mrs. Peace. It's nice to meet you," Jenna said into the woman's shoulder. Mrs. Peace laughed and said, "Please, call me Angela. Mrs. Peace is my business name." Jenna smiled and looked at Warren. He shrugged and said, "Mom, this is Jenna Lawrence. She's a…friend…from school." Jenna raised an eyebrow at the hesitation on the word 'friend', but let it go when Angela said, "Lawrence! Oh, your father's Jonas, isn't he? Your parents and Warren's father and I went to school together. Oh, your parents were inseparable back then…Baron would be so proud to see his son friends with his best friend's daughter."

----------------------------------------------------

After a dinner of spaghetti, Angela led Jenna into the living room while Warren offered to wash the dishes. Jenna offered to help him, but Warren shook his head and Angela pulled her onto the couch. Angela pulled a few books off of the shelves and put them on the coffee table. She then sat next to Jenna and opened one of the books. It was full of pictures of Warren when he was first born. Jenna 'awed' Warren's photos. She noticed that the red streak was natural.

After that first scrap book-and Angela's explanations of each photo in it, Warren walked into the living room and groaned deeply when he saw what they were doing. Angela's eyes sparkled and she patted the couch. "Come on, Warren," Jenna said, smiling. Not in a taunting way, but a genuine smile. Warren sat down next to her and draped his arm across the back of the couch, looking at the scrapbook in Jenna's lap.

In the second scrapbook were photos of Baron and Warren. Playing, eating, wrestling, on of Warren sleeping on his dad's chest, one on Warren's fifth birthday. He smiled at the memories. The next scrapbook was of Angela and Baron's wedding. After that, Angel and Baron while Angela was pregnant with Warren, and finally, an old yearbook from Angela and Baron's senior year.

They looked through all the pictures, Angela pointing out people she used to know, some people she still did know, people she didn't like back then, people she didn't like now, herself, Baron, the Commander, Jetstream, Jonas and Lily (Jenna's mother). By the time they were finished, Jenna was smiling a lot and Warren had his chin on her shoulder, looking at the pictures.

----------------------------------------------------

It was almost 10 when Warren pulled Jenna up to his room. Jenna sat down on his bed and said, "You're mom's awesome, Warren." Warren smiled wistfully and said, "Yea…so's yours, though." Jenna smiled and said, "I don't think I can sleep here tonight, school, you know…so I should probably get going soon." Warren nodded and said, "Soon." He pulled out another scrapbook. This one was of their gang. It wasn't full, though. "Layla started it a while ago. She passed it to me to put some pictures of the group in that I took…I thought I should pass it to the next person." Jenna grinned and said, "I remember most of the pictures you took."

She opened the book and looked at Layla's bright green pages, filled with pictures of everyone. Maj and Zack together, doing homework, Will and Ethan talking on the couch in the den. Jenna and Warren in the den, playing video games. Warren's pages were dark red. He started out with an individual picture of everyone. Zack trying to rap, Maj laughing at Zack's pathetic rap, Will striking a pose, Layla growing a flower, Jenna grinning at something and Ethan halfway through a melt. Warren had somehow managed to catch him with his face still in tact. Then he had a group picture, taken in the Paper Lantern that first night.

----------------------------------------------------

The next day at school, Jenna handed the book to Ethan at lunch. "I spent half the night putting that together…I couldn't sleep," Jenna said, grinning sheepishly at Warren and Layla. Her pages were bright pink. She had pictures from the amusement park mostly. A picture of Warren holding her blue cotton candy, Will and Layla in the fun house, Ethan on the Ferris wheel, Maj and Zack in the haunted house (Zack was glowing). Then she had some pictures her mother had taken while they were in the pool. Layla, Will, Warren and Jenna playing chicken, Maj and Zack dunking each other, Will, Layla, Ethan, Maj and Zack talking while Warren and Jenna tried to dunk each other, and finally, Warren and Jenna trying to dunk each other right before the doorbell rang and her father came out.

Everyone laughed at the memories. Ethan put the book in his bag and promised to have it finished soon to give to the next person. The rest of lunch was spent play fighting with food (Warren and Jenna started a mini-food fight between themselves and when Will got hit by Warren's chip, everyone joined in, except Ethan, who was taking pictures for his part of the scrapbook) until a tall, leggy blonde walked up to the table, smiling.


	10. Is it a her? and Is that a yes?

"Hey, Warren, guys," she said, smiling at them all. Everyone stopped throwing food at each other, even Jenna, who had no idea who the girl was. Warren had a confused look on his face and said, "Hey, Tracy…" Everyone else murmured a 'Hello' to 'Tracy' as well, including Jenna. "Warren, could I…ha, could I talk to you for a second?" she asked, a hint of pleading in her voice. Warren looked at Jenna before saying, "Uhh…sure?" She smiled and grabbed his hand, pulling him over to a secluded part of the cafeteria. Jenna looked at everyone and said, "What was that all about?" Layla smiled sadly and said, "That was Tracy Frost, Warren's ex girlfriend. He broke up with her because she was getting possessive. She didn't even like him talking to me and Maj."

Jenna frowned and said, "She seemed nice, though." Layla nodded and said, "At first, she is. She sat with us for a while but then she made Warren sit with her and her friends. Eventually, she made him choose: Us or her. He chose us." Jenna shook her head and said, "That's sick. You shouldn't make people choose between their friends and you. It's even sicker if they choose you above their friends. Chances are the relationship fails right after that ad then you have both no friends and no partner." Layla shrugged and said, "Some people think they rule the world, unfortunately."

Warren walked back to the table, an annoyed expression on his face. "What'd she want, man?" Zack asked, looking at him. "To get back together," he said, annoyance evident in his voice, although it wasn't directed at them. "And?" Maj asked. Jenna looked at him too, secretly wishing he said no. "I said no," he said, the annoyance now clear in his voice, and it was directed at them this time. "She wanted to know if we could go to Homecoming together, but I said I was planning on asking someone else." Everyone looked at him like he was insane.

"Who are you asking?" Layla asked excitedly. "Why didn't you tell us?" Will asked, frowning. "When did you meet her?" Maj demanded. "_Is_ it a her?" Zack asked. Everyone looked at him, astounded that Zack could be so dumb. Jenna stayed quiet. For some reason, she was sad. Warren was going to Homecoming with someone else…why was she sad? She had no reason to be. She didn't like him…they weren't together. _He's not taken yet. He hasn't asked yet! You could still ask him to go! But…he just said he was going to ask someone else. No, I'll keep my mouth shut. _

Warren just rolled his eyes and said, nothing, glancing up at Jenna every now and again, although, she was too zoned out to notice. He wondered for a fleeting moment whether she was disappointed he was asking someone. If only she knew…

----------------------------------------------------

As the day progressed, Jenna became more and more distant from Warren. She'd still be happy and friendly with everyone else, but she'd barely talk to Warren. Finally, Warren got fed up with her ignoring him, so he grabbed her arm before she could open her locker and dragged her into a deserted hallway. "What's wrong with you? You've been ignoring me ever since lunch!"

Jenna looked up at him, a bit shocked and said, "Nothing's wrong!" "You've been ignoring me ever since I said I was asking someone to the dance!" "I was preoccupied!" she argued, willing herself not to get emotional. She'd made up her mind: She liked Warren, but she wouldn't tell him, because he liked someone else and telling him would only hurt her in the end…and it would ruin their friendship.

"No you weren't! I've been trying to ask you something all day, but you ran away every time I saw you, or you started up a conversation with someone else!" "What were you trying to ask?" _If I would go shopping for a tux with you?_ "I was going to ask you to the dance!" he said, shocking both himself and Jenna. "What?" she asked, looking at him. "Will you go to the dance with me?" he asked quietly. Jenna punched his arm and said, "Why couldn't you have asked me yesterday?" She laughed, though, which pretty much destroyed her attempt at anger.

Warren laughed and said, "So is that a yes?" "Yes, that's a yes!" she said, grinning.

**The End**

* * *

If you guys want to know what happens next in Jenna and Warren's life, read my sequel, "Do I Know You?"!


End file.
